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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The world building in this book is incredible! It really takes the time to flesh out the different cultures present within the narrative and how they interact with each other within the setting. I really enjoyed the characters and the folklore elements, and I am incredibly excited to see where the remainder of the series takes us as the political tension and character relationships that were set up in this book continue to evolve!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rating Really Enjoyed It, 4 stars
The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless is the first book in the Gael Song series (I believe it is slated for a trilogy), which intertwines Irish history and Irish mythology and folklore. We follow the characters Gormflaith and Fódla, two immortal(ish) women on opposite sides of a bitter, secret conflict. Gormlaith is a Fomorian who possesses fire magic. Fódla is a descendent of the Tuatha Dé Dannan, ancient Irish gods, and she possesses healing magic. The number of people on each side is dwindling after a fierce war between the races, and they now attempt to either live hidden or in plain sight amongst the mortals of Ireland.
Gormlaith was at one time married to the Viking king of Dublin, and we follow her POV as she schemes and plots a way for her mortal son and her immortal brother to seize control and power. Fódla's people have withdrawn from mortal society and live hidden, but after her sister breaks their laws and conceives a child with a mortal, Fódla is tasked with raising him in the mortal world and spying on the King of Munster who is positioning himself to become the High King of Ireland. There is a lot of political maneuvering and lots of ties to genuine Irish history, including characters and battles.
I am going to be perfectly honest, when I first started seeing this book around and seeing the positive buzz around it, I was intrigued, but also felt very intimidated. I feel like my typical experience with historical fantasy is that it tends to be dense and can be somewhat difficult to read through. However that was NOT at all the case with this book. I was immediately drawn into all the plotting and the scheming and was really invested in the plotlines of both characters, but Fódla in particular. Shawna Lawless' writing kept me tearing through the pages, even when I was following the storyline I was less invested in. If I hadn't been reading this as a buddy read on a pre-determined schedule, I probably would have finished this in a couple of days.
I definitely preferred Fódla's POV and was more connected to her as a character as well as her journey, I did appreciate the contrast between her and Gormflaith. Gormflaith was much more of a villanous character. She was out to promote her own personal gain and that of her son over all else. Fódla was much more innocent to the ways of the world as she had been kept away from the mortal world for a long time. I felt like we saw her start to realize that some of what she had been taught had been wrong, and she began to question her people's stance of standing separate from the mortal world. I thought it was interesting because I felt like Gormflaith was very overbearing and controlling to her son, and in her quest to protect him, she sort of did the same thing to him that Fódla's leaders had done to her. So I thought that was an interesting contrast.
I am not really sure what to expect in the next book, but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing where this goes. I have a feeling that this will be one of the series that I slowly build more and more character attachment as I go through it, which will result in even higher enjoyment as I continue. I definitely recommend this book if it sounds at all interesting, and if you want a well-written, easy to read, historical fantasy!
I received a copy for review from Kaye Publicity and the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless is the first book in the Gael Song series (I believe it is slated for a trilogy), which intertwines Irish history and Irish mythology and folklore. We follow the characters Gormflaith and Fódla, two immortal(ish) women on opposite sides of a bitter, secret conflict. Gormlaith is a Fomorian who possesses fire magic. Fódla is a descendent of the Tuatha Dé Dannan, ancient Irish gods, and she possesses healing magic. The number of people on each side is dwindling after a fierce war between the races, and they now attempt to either live hidden or in plain sight amongst the mortals of Ireland.
Gormlaith was at one time married to the Viking king of Dublin, and we follow her POV as she schemes and plots a way for her mortal son and her immortal brother to seize control and power. Fódla's people have withdrawn from mortal society and live hidden, but after her sister breaks their laws and conceives a child with a mortal, Fódla is tasked with raising him in the mortal world and spying on the King of Munster who is positioning himself to become the High King of Ireland. There is a lot of political maneuvering and lots of ties to genuine Irish history, including characters and battles.
I am going to be perfectly honest, when I first started seeing this book around and seeing the positive buzz around it, I was intrigued, but also felt very intimidated. I feel like my typical experience with historical fantasy is that it tends to be dense and can be somewhat difficult to read through. However that was NOT at all the case with this book. I was immediately drawn into all the plotting and the scheming and was really invested in the plotlines of both characters, but Fódla in particular. Shawna Lawless' writing kept me tearing through the pages, even when I was following the storyline I was less invested in. If I hadn't been reading this as a buddy read on a pre-determined schedule, I probably would have finished this in a couple of days.
I definitely preferred Fódla's POV and was more connected to her as a character as well as her journey, I did appreciate the contrast between her and Gormflaith. Gormflaith was much more of a villanous character. She was out to promote her own personal gain and that of her son over all else. Fódla was much more innocent to the ways of the world as she had been kept away from the mortal world for a long time. I felt like we saw her start to realize that some of what she had been taught had been wrong, and she began to question her people's stance of standing separate from the mortal world. I thought it was interesting because I felt like Gormflaith was very overbearing and controlling to her son, and in her quest to protect him, she sort of did the same thing to him that Fódla's leaders had done to her. So I thought that was an interesting contrast.
I am not really sure what to expect in the next book, but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing where this goes. I have a feeling that this will be one of the series that I slowly build more and more character attachment as I go through it, which will result in even higher enjoyment as I continue. I definitely recommend this book if it sounds at all interesting, and if you want a well-written, easy to read, historical fantasy!
I received a copy for review from Kaye Publicity and the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I started out really liking this but by the end found it to be dragging a little. I loved the setting of medieval Ireland but wish there was a little more focus on the fantasy components. My favorite character is Gormlaith, I love her scheming and think she is the most interesting by far. Fodla by contrast felt a little boring to me and I didn’t enjoy her chapters as much until she started mixing with Murchad and King Brian. I think the jumps in time were a little disorienting and took away from the plot-building. I also felt that the end of the book was a little anti-climactic. I liked the political scheming but didn’t feel invested enough in any of the other characters to care about the battle outcomes - if there are subsequent books I need cliff hangers and high stakes to keep me reading and felt this fell a little flat. TLDR setting was the best part, a more fast paced plot and investment in other characters would have done it for me.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes